7. Activity 1- Expert Activity This activity has been targeted for a Grade 8 English class (13-year-olds). Two of the learning outcomes for this unit of inquiry were to understand the use of figurative language in literature and identify the various moods found in different forms of written expression such as music lyrics and poems. These two ideas are often quite challenging for a 14 year old to grasp, so the content had to be scaffolded. Students had been exposed to different learning activities that range from learning poetic devices to reading model sample work that showed how figurative could be analyzed and interpreted. The expert activity came in handy for the second part of the unit, which required students to portray a mood through different avenues such as drama, drawing, building and writing. These would be conveyed through figurative language and ideas. Each group was given a flash card with instructions like the excerpt below: a) Builders: You need to build a scene that represents a specific mood, using figurative (imaginative) images and symbols. For instance, you might want to represent frustration by portraying somebody struggling to climb a high and uneven wall showing facial expressions. Your goal is to ensure that the viewers ‘get it’; they need to identify what mood/s you are trying to convey b) Artists: Draw an elaborate (detailed) sketch for a mural that represents a specific mood, using figurative (imaginative) images and symbols. For instance, you might want to represent frustration by portraying somebody struggling to climb a high and uneven wall showing facial expressions. Your goal is to ensure that the viewers ‘get it’; they need to identify what mood/s you are trying to convey. Actors: You will create a 3-5 minute skit that represents a particular mood. You can choose any genre such as comedy, melodrama, or drama but you need to ensure that the audience understands what mood you are trying to convey. Try to use figurative language if needed. Writers: Write a poem or a journal entry that represents a specific mood, using figurative (imaginative) language such as metaphors, idioms, symbols etc. Your goal is to ensure that the viewers ‘get it’; they need to identify what mood/s you are trying to convey Students were told that in each presentation:
Figurative language had to be used to convey a mood
The audience had to able to identify a mood.
I allocated a 100 minute double period block to complete this activity. In the previous lesson students had been asked to rank their level of talent or expertise and give a brief justification for each. In this way I could start with my activity, straight away, the next day. This activity was quite successful; as predicted by our course instructor, students worked meticulously and required more time to complete their work. Unfortunately, one of my classes did not have enough time to complete their work because of a school wide activity; nevertheless students worked hard and played hard. My other English class, Period 2, has a bigger LD and ESL population; it, therefore, came with no surprise that this class responded better to this activity. The two groups of actors conveyed their mood in a clear and original manner. For instance, one group conveyed anxiety and absentmindedness by portraying a comical character who encounters various impediments on his way to work, only to find out that he had mistakenly turned up to work on a Saturday morning. In this state of disarray and bewilderment, he realizes he ought to pull his life together.
If I could change this activity next time, I would not demand that the student convey the mood using figurative language. Even though, builders, writers and artists managed to include this in their final product, the actors struggled and ultimately this hindered their creativity. I was very pleased with the builders as they let their imagination run wild. Their products ranged from clowns whose expression represented hypocrisy to stick figures who struggled to get out of what was “keeping them in.” This allowed for a meaningful discussion in class; furthermore, students were able to reinforce their understanding of figurative language and the role this plays in creating a mood. Apart from catering for different students’ needs, this activity also allowed students to appreciate how different kinds of moods can be conveyed through different avenues. Furthermore, students were exposed to all five linguistic skills. Activity 2- Exit Points This activity has been targeted for a Grade 8 Humanities class. (13-year-olds) In the Middle Years Programme, content knowledge is not taught as a stand-alone aspect; instead, it has to be relevant to the students. The content of the unit has to serve an overarching concept, the significant concept, and the unit question. My Grade 8 humanities class, had been learning about the Renaissance; this was a perfect avenue for students to appreciate the significant concept of the unit: Ideas evolve through time. The students had already written a research project about how a chosen idea from the Renaissance had evolved through time. The exit points would, therefore, allow them to consolidate their understanding of the significant concept. Students were separated in one of the groups below: Economists-They prepare a graph or a flow chart that shows how the availability of books has increased throughout time. For example, they might want to show the efficiency rate of each invention. Their product must, ultimately, outline the different stages/benchmarks in the evolution of the printing press. Historians- They prepare a timeline that shows the key stages in the advance of medicine from the Renaissance until nowadays. Painters- They pretend that they are local Florentine artists who must convince their ruler, the young Lorenzo De Medici, to sponsor their art. They need to create a convincingly clear argument, explaining how future generations will benefit from their progressive ideas about the style and the technique of their paintings. Writers- They write a fiction/non-fiction piece, which is set in the Renaissance. This can be a letter, short play, journal entry, newspaper article etc. Their product discusses the progress made in architecture during the Renaissance and its significance for future generations. Students were told that each presentation should convey:
Historical accuracy
The evolution of the idea
Logical and sequential information
The children responded very well to this activity. They were given 90 minutes to research information and complete their work, but students seemed very engaged and would have worked for longer. I was very impressed because usually, at this time of the year, with less than a week to go before summer vacation, students start to get rather restless. Instead, they enjoyed it. The presentations varied. One group of painters, even though they had a historically accurate presentation, went out of point. Rather than convincing De Medici to sponsor them because this would benefit future generations, they presented a “battle of the artists.” Nevertheless, most of the presentations fulfilled the aforementioned three expectations. The group of economists produced two flow charts in which they compared the PPM (pages per minute) of different printing presses. The information was historically accurate, it clearly conveyed the significant concept and was presented in a logical and sequential manner. It was clear that these students were immersed in their roles of expertise because they even wore suits. In conclusion I will certainly do this again. I differentiated instruction, while ensuring that all activities were purposeful and challenging for everyone. I think the main objective in the end was achieved, as all students were able to learn from their peers’ different perspectives and reinforce their understanding of the significant concept. Conclusion Upon reflection, I realized that these two activities, even though they had different learning outcomes, were quite similar in nature. They both focused on student expertise and catered for different abilities. Nevertheless, it is essential that differentiated activities ‘fit’ in the grand scheme of unit planning. Differentiated instruction cannot be effective if it is a mere standalone activity; it is the teacher’s responsibility to adapt ideas to fit the learning outcomes of the unit of work. My two activities were meaningful to my students because they linked to the unit’s significant concepts, allowing students to make strong connections. Furthermore, students were encouraged to choose their areas of interest and explore it; this made learning relevant to their lives. However, next time I will ensure I plan these activities during the designing stages of the units rather than at the end.
6. Alli and I did this for the Tic Tac Toe: Character Development
Create a comic strip of one of the scenes with our character from the story.
Pick a job that the main character from our book would be good at and write a letter to a an employer on what qualities would make him/her a good candidate
Make an item that you imagine the character would possess based on their personality and actions from the story.
Create a model of the character’s bedroom. Explain why you have chosen designs, objects, and colours based on the character’s personality.
Create an abstract, artistic representation of the character highlighting traits, struggles, or achievements from the story. You can use symbols or imaginative portrayals to convey your message.
Create and color a mask that represents what the character is all about. Things to consider: facial expression, color, shape, etc. These need to convey traits of the character.
Pick a scene that highlights the character’s personality and create a diorama of that scene. Ensure that the scene highlights one or more of the main character’s traits. Write a brief justification on your choices.
Write a new ending to the book. Please ensure that it is consistent with the character’s personality.
Write a script between two or more characters describing one scene from the book in your own words.
5. Describe an evolutionary reason why there might be an advantage to any of the special needs populations that we discussed in class. Please do not consider gifted as one of the populations for our discussion.
Nature’s main goal is to ensure the survival of a race over different periods and changes. Through evolution and genetic alterations it ensures that species amongst which humans become adaptable to new environments. Darwin believes in the survival of the most adaptable; for instance he highlighted how finches in different environments had different beaks as to adapt themselves to different food sources. Like finches we humans strive to carry on our gene and hence create specimens that will be more adaptable to the environmental challenges that nature will expose us to. As we learn more about global issues that might have cataclysmic outcomes, such as water shortage, famine, population growth and the depletion of essential resources, we are attempting to find solutions. Gardner states that man can possess up to nine different multiple intelligences. These intelligences could pretty much represent different perspectives in the journey to problem solving. Education caters for a very limited amount of intelligences; therefore, our perspective is limited by this self-imposed 'standardization'. Nature here is trying to tell us something: as we continue to interact and manipulate with our environments for necessity and comfort, we must conceptualize more elaborately and this can only be possible through multifaceted problem solving. This is where people with ‘’special needs’’ can play a starring role. Could it be these people are the missing link? Special Needs populations are more likely the remedy because they can think outside of the box, or to rephrase it better, they think without a box. Studies show that people with special needs demonstrate specific intelligences that differ from the norm. Could these intelligences help us conceptualize better and adapt ourselves to more complex scenarios?
4.
Mariella, Fiorella, Joe, Rita V.
High Functioning Autistic, Aspergers
Students that focus on a single interest
If not treated on time the disease degenerates
Students maybe a handful at home and disruptive at school but have high intellectual abilities
Is usually represented as endless body rocking and arm flopping
Excessive sensory stimulation can be overwhelming for them
Concrete thinkers
Struggle with abstract thinking
Hard to deal with too much stimulus (noisy environments)
Use literal meanings
Avoid too much sensory stimulus
Keep a schedule routine
Written plan of classroom plans and responsibilities
Create a safe, happy and positive environment
Learn about child´s issues and interests.
Be kind but firm.
· Identify student´s individual needs in specific situations such as play areas. For instance which type of textures stimulate/irritate students · They must have a written behavior plan · Visual support
Include parents
3. My cartoon is called "The Field Trip"and was created with Geoff Shirk.
2.Write one short reflection. (less than 250 words) Tell us (everyone can see your wiki page) one new thing that you learned about Multiple Intelligence / Learning Styles or differentiation.
Differentiation is a huge is a multi-faceted component in education. As any other huge concept in life, the term differentiation tends to be misused, overly simplified, and misinterpreted. Throughout my 7 years of teaching, I've been exposed to this term incessantly, but I always struggled to get the bigger picture and bring together the lose ends. This probably is one of the reasons why I am skeptical about differentiation, less skeptical though.
I've really enjoyed this course so far. The leader has been practicing what he preaches and this has allowed me to see different strategies that could make my class meaningful. I need to categorize information, and yesterday I was able to start with this process with the vast information about differentiation. For instance yesterday Hank told us that there are different aspects that can be differentiated not only one, assessment. This allowed me to realize that even though I am still skeptical about differentiating assessment, I value differentiating other aspects of my teaching such a scaffolding learnning through varied activities.
I've also learned that there is a fundamental difference between Multiple Intelligences and Learning Styles. In the past these two ideas were thrown together in a very careless and confusing manner. I know now that the learning style is how information IS PRESENTED to students whereas multiple intelligences tell us about how learners process information.
Oh well, I am hungry. Cheerio everybody
1. My name is Joe Bonnici and I was born in the cradle of all civilizations better known as Malta. I am 30 years old and I love three things.
A. Talking- I've always talked a lot, ever since I was a child; I guess this is why I became a teacher.
B. I love spending quality time with people. This goes back to my fixation of listening to my own voice......But I listen as well. I have three solid friends in Malta, but I was blessed with teaching internationally, and throughout the years, I've bonded with special people who I would have not had the possibility to ever interact with had I stayed in Malta.
C. I am passionate about music, travelling and my football team. The first two remind me that it is essential to be carefree in life. I support my football team because I am a masochist.
This activity has been targeted for a Grade 8 English class (13-year-olds).
Two of the learning outcomes for this unit of inquiry were to understand the use of figurative language in literature and identify the various moods found in different forms of written expression such as music lyrics and poems. These two ideas are often quite challenging for a 14 year old to grasp, so the content had to be scaffolded. Students had been exposed to different learning activities that range from learning poetic devices to reading model sample work that showed how figurative could be analyzed and interpreted.
The expert activity came in handy for the second part of the unit, which required students to portray a mood through different avenues such as drama, drawing, building and writing. These would be conveyed through figurative language and ideas.
Each group was given a flash card with instructions like the excerpt below:
a) Builders: You need to build a scene that represents a specific mood, using figurative (imaginative) images and symbols. For instance, you might want to represent frustration by portraying somebody struggling to climb a high and uneven wall showing facial expressions. Your goal is to ensure that the viewers ‘get it’; they need to identify what mood/s you are trying to convey
b) Artists: Draw an elaborate (detailed) sketch for a mural that represents a specific mood, using figurative (imaginative) images and symbols. For instance, you might want to represent frustration by portraying somebody struggling to climb a high and uneven wall showing facial expressions. Your goal is to ensure that the viewers ‘get it’; they need to identify what mood/s you are trying to convey.
Actors: You will create a 3-5 minute skit that represents a particular mood. You can choose any genre such as comedy, melodrama, or drama but you need to ensure that the audience understands what mood you are trying to convey. Try to use figurative language if needed.
Writers: Write a poem or a journal entry that represents a specific mood, using figurative (imaginative) language such as metaphors, idioms, symbols etc. Your goal is to ensure that the viewers ‘get it’; they need to identify what mood/s you are trying to convey
Students were told that in each presentation:
I allocated a 100 minute double period block to complete this activity. In the previous lesson students had been asked to rank their level of talent or expertise and give a brief justification for each. In this way I could start with my activity, straight away, the next day.
This activity was quite successful; as predicted by our course instructor, students worked meticulously and required more time to complete their work. Unfortunately, one of my classes did not have enough time to complete their work because of a school wide activity; nevertheless students worked hard and played hard.
My other English class, Period 2, has a bigger LD and ESL population; it, therefore, came with no surprise that this class responded better to this activity. The two groups of actors conveyed their mood in a clear and original manner. For instance, one group conveyed anxiety and absentmindedness by portraying a comical character who encounters various impediments on his way to work, only to find out that he had mistakenly turned up to work on a Saturday morning. In this state of disarray and bewilderment, he realizes he ought to pull his life together.
If I could change this activity next time, I would not demand that the student convey the mood using figurative language. Even though, builders, writers and artists managed to include this in their final product, the actors struggled and ultimately this hindered their creativity.
I was very pleased with the builders as they let their imagination run wild. Their products ranged from clowns whose expression represented hypocrisy to stick figures who struggled to get out of what was “keeping them in.” This allowed for a meaningful discussion in class; furthermore, students were able to reinforce their understanding of figurative language and the role this plays in creating a mood.
Apart from catering for different students’ needs, this activity also allowed students to appreciate how different kinds of moods can be conveyed through different avenues. Furthermore, students were exposed to all five linguistic skills.
Activity 2- Exit Points
This activity has been targeted for a Grade 8 Humanities class. (13-year-olds)
In the Middle Years Programme, content knowledge is not taught as a stand-alone aspect; instead, it has to be relevant to the students. The content of the unit has to serve an overarching concept, the significant concept, and the unit question. My Grade 8 humanities class, had been learning about the Renaissance; this was a perfect avenue for students to appreciate the significant concept of the unit: Ideas evolve through time.
The students had already written a research project about how a chosen idea from the Renaissance had evolved through time. The exit points would, therefore, allow them to consolidate their understanding of the significant concept.
Students were separated in one of the groups below:
Economists-They prepare a graph or a flow chart that shows how the availability of books has increased throughout time. For example, they might want to show the efficiency rate of each invention. Their product must, ultimately, outline the different stages/benchmarks in the evolution of the printing press.
Historians- They prepare a timeline that shows the key stages in the advance of medicine from the Renaissance until nowadays.
Painters- They pretend that they are local Florentine artists who must convince their ruler, the young Lorenzo De Medici, to sponsor their art. They need to create a convincingly clear argument, explaining how future generations will benefit from their progressive ideas about the style and the technique of their paintings.
Writers- They write a fiction/non-fiction piece, which is set in the Renaissance. This can be a letter, short play, journal entry, newspaper article etc. Their product discusses the progress made in architecture during the Renaissance and its significance for future generations.
Students were told that each presentation should convey:
The children responded very well to this activity. They were given 90 minutes to research information and complete their work, but students seemed very engaged and would have worked for longer. I was very impressed because usually, at this time of the year, with less than a week to go before summer vacation, students start to get rather restless. Instead, they enjoyed it.
The presentations varied. One group of painters, even though they had a historically accurate presentation, went out of point. Rather than convincing De Medici to sponsor them because this would benefit future generations, they presented a “battle of the artists.”
Nevertheless, most of the presentations fulfilled the aforementioned three expectations. The group of economists produced two flow charts in which they compared the PPM (pages per minute) of different printing presses. The information was historically accurate, it clearly conveyed the significant concept and was presented in a logical and sequential manner. It was clear that these students were immersed in their roles of expertise because they even wore suits.
In conclusion I will certainly do this again. I differentiated instruction, while ensuring that all activities were purposeful and challenging for everyone. I think the main objective in the end was achieved, as all students were able to learn from their peers’ different perspectives and reinforce their understanding of the significant concept.
Conclusion
Upon reflection, I realized that these two activities, even though they had different learning outcomes, were quite similar in nature. They both focused on student expertise and catered for different abilities. Nevertheless, it is essential that differentiated activities ‘fit’ in the grand scheme of unit planning. Differentiated instruction cannot be effective if it is a mere standalone activity; it is the teacher’s responsibility to adapt ideas to fit the learning outcomes of the unit of work.
My two activities were meaningful to my students because they linked to the unit’s significant concepts, allowing students to make strong connections. Furthermore, students were encouraged to choose their areas of interest and explore it; this made learning relevant to their lives. However, next time I will ensure I plan these activities during the designing stages of the units rather than at the end.
6. Alli and I did this for the Tic Tac Toe:
Character Development
5. Describe an evolutionary reason why there might be an advantage to any of the special needs populations that we discussed in class. Please do not consider gifted as one of the populations for our discussion.
Nature’s main goal is to ensure the survival of a race over different periods and changes. Through evolution and genetic alterations it ensures that species amongst which humans become adaptable to new environments. Darwin believes in the survival of the most adaptable; for instance he highlighted how finches in different environments had different beaks as to adapt themselves to different food sources. Like finches we humans strive to carry on our gene and hence create specimens that will be more adaptable to the environmental challenges that nature will expose us to. As we learn more about global issues that might have cataclysmic outcomes, such as water shortage, famine, population growth and the depletion of essential resources, we are attempting to find solutions. Gardner states that man can possess up to nine different multiple intelligences. These intelligences could pretty much represent different perspectives in the journey to problem solving. Education caters for a very limited amount of intelligences; therefore, our perspective is limited by this self-imposed 'standardization'. Nature here is trying to tell us something: as we continue to interact and manipulate with our environments for necessity and comfort, we must conceptualize more elaborately and this can only be possible through multifaceted problem solving. This is where people with ‘’special needs’’ can play a starring role. Could it be these people are the missing link? Special Needs populations are more likely the remedy because they can think outside of the box, or to rephrase it better, they think without a box. Studies show that people with special needs demonstrate specific intelligences that differ from the norm. Could these intelligences help us conceptualize better and adapt ourselves to more complex scenarios?
4.
Aspergers
- Use literal meanings
- Avoid too much sensory stimulus
- Keep a schedule routine
- Written plan of classroom plans and responsibilities
- Create a safe, happy and positive environment
- Learn about child´s issues and interests.
- Be kind but firm.
· Identify student´s individual needs in specific situations such as play areas. For instance which type of textures stimulate/irritate students· They must have a written behavior plan
· Visual support
3. My cartoon is called "The Field Trip"and was created with Geoff Shirk.
2.Write one short reflection. (less than 250 words) Tell us (everyone can see your wiki page) one new thing that you learned about Multiple Intelligence / Learning Styles or differentiation.
Differentiation is a huge is a multi-faceted component in education. As any other huge concept in life, the term differentiation tends to be misused, overly simplified, and misinterpreted. Throughout my 7 years of teaching, I've been exposed to this term incessantly, but I always struggled to get the bigger picture and bring together the lose ends. This probably is one of the reasons why I am skeptical about differentiation, less skeptical though.
I've really enjoyed this course so far. The leader has been practicing what he preaches and this has allowed me to see different strategies that could make my class meaningful. I need to categorize information, and yesterday I was able to start with this process with the vast information about differentiation. For instance yesterday Hank told us that there are different aspects that can be differentiated not only one, assessment. This allowed me to realize that even though I am still skeptical about differentiating assessment, I value differentiating other aspects of my teaching such a scaffolding learnning through varied activities.
I've also learned that there is a fundamental difference between Multiple Intelligences and Learning Styles. In the past these two ideas were thrown together in a very careless and confusing manner. I know now that the learning style is how information IS PRESENTED to students whereas multiple intelligences tell us about how learners process information.
Oh well, I am hungry. Cheerio everybody
1. My name is Joe Bonnici and I was born in the cradle of all civilizations better known as Malta. I am 30 years old and I love three things.
A. Talking- I've always talked a lot, ever since I was a child; I guess this is why I became a teacher.
B. I love spending quality time with people. This goes back to my fixation of listening to my own voice......But I listen as well. I have three solid friends in Malta, but I was blessed with teaching internationally, and throughout the years, I've bonded with special people who I would have not had the possibility to ever interact with had I stayed in Malta.
C. I am passionate about music, travelling and my football team. The first two remind me that it is essential to be carefree in life. I support my football team because I am a masochist.
1. This is my assignment page.